THE AMBASSADORS
Special Peace Issue
THE AMBASSADORS
Special Peace Issue
OPINION
Volume 2,
Issue 2
April 1999
A Message For PEACE- by Essam Farag
On Easter Sunday, April 4, 1999, Pope
John Paul II (78 years old) offered his Easter grettings in
St.Peter's Square to a crowd of more than 150,000 in 60
languages, including Serbo-Croat and Albanian. He made an
emotional Easter plea to Yugoslav authorities for a
"humanitarian corridor" so help can reach Kosovo's
desperate masses of refugees. The pope also expressed dismay over
Yugoslavia's violence against ethnic Albanians in Kosovo and the
NATO airstrikes aimed at trying to induce Yugoslavia back to the
peace table. He commented on the situation saying:
"On this holy day I feel duty-bound to make a heartfelt appeal to the authorities of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia to allow a humanitarian corridor to be opened in order for help to be brought to the mass of people gathered at the border of Kosovo," the pope said.
The Vatican's diplomatic envoys have been working for both an end to the NATO bombings and a return to the negotiating table for ethnic Albanians and Yugoslav leaders. The Pope added:
"When the heavens are rent by the din of war, when the whistle of shells is heard around people's homes and the ravaging fire of bombs consumes towns and villages?
Enough of this cruel shedding of human blood! When will there be an end to the diabolical spiral of revenge and senseless fratricidal conflict?"
Previously, Pope John Paul II had also called for an end to the continuous bombing of Iraq by US and British forces. Peace can only be accomplished if all sides are willing to discuss matters clearly and often a comprimise is required of all sides.
In his speech, he also makes mention to the situation in Africa, "...where the distressing fires of war are slow to disappear;" of Asia, "...where dangerous social tensions are far from abating," and also Latin America, "...where nations were committed to advancing on a laborious and uneven path towards the goals of greater justice and democracy."
Pope John Paul II's tone was sombre in giving his main message:
"How can Christ's message of joy and hope be made toresound when so many parts of the world are submerged in sorrow and tears? How can we speak of peace when people are forced to flee, when they are hunted down and their homes are burnt to the ground, when the heavens are rent by the din of war, when the whistle of shells is heard around people's homes and the ravaging fire of bombs consumes towns and villages?"
